Ain't My First Rodeo
by Diary
Summary: Warning: Contains potentially disturbing content. Kurt finds an animal caught in a bear trap and enlists Toad for help. Complete.


Disclaimer: I do not own X-Men Evolution.

* * *

"And your objection to knocking," Toad inquires, sarcastically, after it's been established the person who shook him awake isn't a serial killer.

Fuzzy shifts. "Er, I'm sorry. I didn't want to deal with the others."

"Fair 'nough," Toad mutters, hopping into a crouching position on his bed. "What's goin' on, dawg?"

"There's a bear trap," Fuzzy starts, rubbing his hand behind his neck. Continuing, he says, "I don't know why. But there's a wildcat, or at least, it has wildcat in it. It's tame, let me pet it."

"Mind making some sense, Blue?"

"The wildcat is trapped. In terrible pain, and I remember you said that you used to be able to help cats and dogs with minimal damage?"

"Stay here," Toad orders, hopping over to his door. He sneaks out, gets the necessary supplies, and comes back to his room. After putting on his beanie and digging his pocketknife out of his shoe, rolling his eyes at Fuzzy's reaction, he says, "Let's go."

"You don't have that there at school, do you?"

…

Once they arrive, he answers, "Ain't never used it against anyone, have I? Aint' ever will, either."

"Then, why do you have it?"

"'Cause," he answers, irritably, eyes scanning the area.

He's not going to tell Kurt Wagner about the time he was once stuck in a chest when a fire tore through. He'd come out okay- had trouble breathing for a month or two, his dreams were even more unpleasant, but he hadn't been burnt. The first time he was locked in his locker, he knew the second time a fire came through, he'd be dead.

The bullies never went near his shoes, and that's where his pocket and combat knives went. The latter's purpose is to win against another human, but he's found it's good at cutting through metal.

A loud, animal cry helps them find the cat.

"Ya stupid, dawg? She has bobcat in her, not wildcat."

"How am I supposed to know the difference," Fuzzy protests as he catches the flashlight Toad tosses him. "How do you?"

Kneeling down, Toad makes eye contact and slowly holds his hand out. She butts it with her head, making a piteous sound when she moves slightly, causing the metal to go deeper into her skin. "Alright," he says, digging his pocketknife out, and she shrinks back as far as she can.

"Hey," he says, keeping his eye locked on hers, "watch me. Not you, Fuzzy," he adds, sparing a glance back. "Don't ya dare scare her further."

Carefully, he makes a thin cut on his arm, ignoring Fuzzy's indrawn breath and the erratic swinging of the flashlight. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Fuzzy almost take a step forward but stop himself. "See," he says to her, "it hurts some, ain't lying, but it won't for long, promise. You'll be fine."

Closing her eyes, she stands perfectly still.

"How-" Fuzzy doesn't finish.

"Crossbreed, dawg," Toad says, setting to work. "Black and white, other different skin colours mixing, mutants, all that, it equals smarts. Or sometimes, just a sense. Cain't say for sure how much she understands, but I'm telling the truth, want to help her, and she knows those things, sees 'em, senses 'em, whatever."

"Oh," is the soft reply.

He gets the trap dismantled, and she sways. "Sh," he says, petting her and getting her to lie down. Taking out the rubbing alcohol, he carefully pours some over his cut, forcing himself to not repress his wince. "Hurts," he tells her, "but it'll help."

She stays motionless.

A few seconds after the rubbing alcohol makes contact with her bloody leg, she lets out a howl, and then, passes out.

Behind him, Fuzzy is muttering in German, likely praying.

"Yo, Nightcrawler," he says, having no patience. "Now's when I most need the light."

After rubbing his hands thoroughly with the rubbing alcohol, he cleans the wounds with it and paper towels, and then, bandages her. "Know any zoos or preserve things 'round here?"

"You- you helped her," Fuzzy says in a tone of voice it takes a moment for Toad to recognise. "You made it look so easy," he continues.

Through the darkness and vague light, Toad can make out the look on Wagner's face.

"Yeah," he mutters, feeling awkward. "I'm great, dawg, ain't ya ever been listenin'? Now, zoo or preserve?"

"You were amazing," Fuzzy insists.

"'Course I was. Think this is my first rodeo? Told ya before, I was good at it. Did it without anyone holding a flashlight, too."

"What's the plan, then? Why a zoo or animal reservation?"

"Best to sneak her into one of them than trying to deal with a vet office, 'specially since they're more likely to have anti-mutant alarms. Ain't make much sense; if that was the type of trouble I wanted to cause, I'd go for a zoo, not some small animal hospital."

"We can't-"

"No, Fuzzy," he interrupts. "We cain't keep her. Dang, which of us is 'posed to be the smart, responsible one? She's bobcat, she's been badly hurt, and just cause she's tame don't mean she'd do okay at either of ours. Probably wander in the danger room at yours and get caught in one of Wanda's fits at mine."

"Right," Kurt (no, don't go there, he tells himself; fuzzy, blue, dawg, even Nightcrawler and Wagner, but never Kurt) says, sighing. "You do have a point."

…

By the time they find a place and get her snuck in, her thankfully staying in a deep sleep, only occasionally stirring, it's near morning.

"Um," Fuzzy says, shifting. "Thank-"

"Did it for her," he says, immediately. He gives her one last pat, makes absolutely sure he has the zoo's name in his phone, and then, stands up. "Take me back, Fuzzy."

…

Once they're back in his room, he starts to change, only for:

"I think I might be gay."

"Er," Toad says, acutely aware he's shirtless and has his hands on his pants. Just what he needs, to be accused of hitting on someone the one time he actually wasn't.

"You haven't asked why I was out so late, so far away from the institute. I just thought that porting to somewhere and trying to find my way back might- I don't know, help," Kurt continues, babbling.

Rolling his eyes, he resumes changing. "Didn't ask 'cause I don't care," he answers. "Don't care 'bout that, either."

"Oh. Um, thank you?"

Shaking his head, Toad finishes changing and says, "Just another thing. Be ashamed of being mutant, wearing glasses, black, crossbreed, whatever. Way I see it, people who legit hurt others, 'specially kids, they have cause. Everyone else, they can either buy into it or tell the world to screw itself. But it ain't my place ta say how you should handle it."

"I wish it was that simple for me."

"Ain't a counsellor, dawg. Find another animal, come and get me. Otherwise, it's best we stick ta being enemies who occasionally steal half of each other's sandwiches."

"Right. Thank you." With that, Kurt's gone.

Sighing, Toad goes down to breakfast.

He ends up against the wall courtesy of Wanda, steals ten bucks from Lance's wallet, and makes Freddy laugh. He tries to defend his toast from Pietro. He hops to school because Lance is using the jeep to pick up Shadowcat.

He resolves to avoid Nightcralwer as much as he can, even though, naturally, today is sausage-and-apples sandwich day, and he's usually able to swipe the whole sandwich, forcing Kurt to go after his pathetic bologna sandwich, because, he's willing to bet he ends up target practise for holding a secret he never wanted to know in the first place.


End file.
